Device physics and state-of-the-art of quantum well infrared photodetectors and arrays

Quantum well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) have been developed very quick ly and large format focal plane arrays with low noise equivalent temperatur e difference, and high uniformity and operability have been demonstrated. U sing high quality GaAs material systems, QWIPs have the potential for high production yield, low cost and low power consumption. QWIP's multicolor det ection capability makes it especially attractive for advanced infrared sens or systems. The basic device physics and detector design of QWIP structures will be given in this paper. A brief comparison of QWIPs with HgCdTe detec tors will be discussed, and the state-of-the-art of the QWIP focal plane ar ray technology will be presented. (C) 2000 Published by Elsevier Science S. A. All rights reserved.